April Angurasaranee rolled a 24-foot birdie putt in from just off the 18th green to clinch the team championship for Team Kouskova at the conclusion of the second round of the Aramco Houston Championship in Pearland, Texas on Saturday.
The putt gave her team, which is captained by Sara Kouskova of the Czech Republic, a narrow victory in the team competition with an aggregate 32-under par 256, one stroke ahead of Team Rhodes and Team Boutier each at 31 under at Golfcrest Country Club.
The tournament is part of the Ladies European Tour’s PIF Global Series, and features a 36-hole team competition, which concluded Saturday, alongside 54 holes of individual stroke-play competition, which will conclude Sunday.
Of the four PIF Global Series team events this season, Team Kouskova has now won two of them, previously claiming a victory at the Aramco Korea Championship in May.
Their captain, Kouskova, has now won two individual and two team events this season. The 2022 LET Order of Merit winner, she currently sits second in the 2025 OoM standings behind England’s Mimi Rhodes.
But it was Angurasaranee, a 21-year-old from Thailand, who delivered in the clutch for a team which also featured Slovenia’s Ana Belac and Denmark’s Sofie Kibsgaard Nielsen.
Angurasaranee shot a team-best 6-under on Saturday, and was the only team member who made any birdies over the final six holes, tallying three of them, including the clincher on the final hole to finish the back nine 5 under.
“I’d never really played that well in team events before, so this is a big change and a really important moment for me,” Angurasaranee said. “I didn’t have any expectations coming into the week, but being part of such a relaxed, supportive team made it really enjoyable.
“That birdie putt on 18 is something I’ll remember for a long time. To see it drop in front of the crowd was such a confidence boost, and it came at just the right time for me.”
In the individual competition Spaniards Carlota Ciganda and Nuria Iturrioz surged up the leaderboard and sit in the top two spots entering Sunday’s final round.
Ciganda shot an 8-under 64 in the second round and holds a one-stroke lead at 10 under over Iturrioz, who shot 5 under on Saturday.
Ciganda, 35, is looking for her first LET win of the season. She placed herself in pole position for the final round thanks to a red-hot start to Saturday’s second round which saw her notch six birdies over a bogey-free back nine after starting on the 10th hole.
It’s a return to form for Ciganda, who has missed her past four cuts in LPGA Tour events.
“My last few events I haven’t been great, so I spent a couple days with my coach on Sunday, Monday,” Ciganda said. “And yeah, I think my swing is back on track. It feels pretty good now. And I think at the end of day just keep working. You have to be always humble, keep practicing and try your best every day.”
Rhodes, the first-round leader, is in solo third place at 8 under after posting a 2 under on Saturday. Angurasaranee and Czech competitor Kristyna Napoleaova round out the top five in a tie for fourth at 7 under after each carding 6 under in the second round.
–Field Level Media
